Many people who care about their looks wonder how to get abs in a month. Losing abdominal fat and toning the muscles in this area are very challenging tasks, especially if you want to achieve these fast. But for anyone who is determined to spend time and effort to lose excess weight and body fat, getting six pack abs is a great reward.

The only way to trim your belly fat and strengthen the abdominal core muscles is to stick to a diet and to exercise daily. In this article, we shall discuss how to get abs in a month.

How to Get Abs in a Month: Losing Fat

1. Learn about Calories Burned

The only way to lose fat is to burn calories. One pound of fat is roughly equivalent to 3,500 calories, so you would need to burn this amount of calories to lose a single pound. That does not sound easy, so you will have to face more realistic expectations, considering that you will probably burn only 1,000 calories after doing vigorous workouts for an hour. But all hope is not lost, because if you are active throughout the day you can burn an extra 600 to 800 additional calories just by walking briskly to work, climbing stairs, doing chores, and avoiding long sitting hours. So there, you may expect to lose one pound by the end of a week.

Another thing you have to consider is that losing fat in one particular body part such as the abdomen is not very realistic, so if you lose one pound from your body weight, it may mean that you burned fat deposited in different places in your body and not just from the belly.

2. Practice Proper Exercises

• Cardio Exercises. To be able to reveal six pack abs you need to trim off any fat that is deposited over the belly. Cardio exercises will help trim body fat away and at the same time promote over-all body health. These exercises increase the work of the heart and make the heart beat faster. Examples of cardio workouts include brisk walking, running, biking, jogging, rowing, and dancing. To burn more calories and lose fat you have to do cardio exercises for at least one hour three to five times a week.
• Interval Training. Interval training is another way to burn calories and lose belly fat fast. It consists of short bursts of vigorous activities followed by periods of light activity. Research shows that interval training burns fat more effectively than spending longer hours exercising at light to moderate intensity. One study showed that individuals who performed high intensity interval training on bikes for just 20 minutes daily lost about four pounds more than those who exercised for 40 minutes daily over a period of 4 months.
• Weight Lifting Exercises. To gain more muscle, do weight lifting exercises or resistance exercises. Doing cardio exercises without weight training may lead to loss of fat and muscle mass, so if you want to get six-pack abs you also have to do lift weight. Furthermore, muscles help burn calories even while you rest, thus making you lose belly fat more efficiently.

3. Change Your Diet Habits

• Time of the Meals. When you eat big meals at the end of the day, you tend to store more fat, especially if have eaten high calorie foods like pizza or pasta. Therefore, it is advisable to consume a larger lunch and eat smaller meals towards the night.
• Contents of the Meals. Choose the type of foods you eat to limit calorie intake. Healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, and nuts are packed with nutrients but low in calorie. Best of all, they can make you feel full longer and reduce your appetite. Drink a glass of water or tea before meals to feel full and eat less. Eat whole grains instead of refined grains. Eating whole grains hastens loss of fat by improving blood sugar levels and insulin response. Another way to lose fat is to avoid foods that slow down metabolism such as: sugar, refined carbohydrates (in the form of white bread, rice and pasta), fast foods, fried foods and other high-fat foods.
• Healthy Breakfast. Eat a healthy breakfast before starting the day. It jumpstarts your metabolism and keeps you from eating more during the day! For breakfast, eat lean protein such as egg whites with spinach, chipotle peppers, and turkey, Greek yogurt with fruits and nuts, or leftover salmon and whole-grain bread. Avoid sugary cereals, bagels, potatoes, white bread, and smoothies.
• Water Intake. Drink a lot of water throughout the day. If you are doing vigorous exercises and you sweat a lot, replace your fluid and salt by taking sports drinks and eating potassium rich foods like apples and bananas.

4. Get Enough Sleep and Reduce Stress

Research suggests that the amount of sleep affects hormones, which control the appetite. People who get more sleep regularly are more likely to lose body fat than those who sleep shorter hours in a night. Having less stress and more sleep increases one's chances of losing weight than having higher levels of stress and less sleep.

How to Get Abs in a Month: Building Muscles

To build more abdominal muscles try these exercises:

1. Sit Ups

While lying on the floor, raise knees with feet on the floor, and place your hands crossed over your chest. Hold your feet down and lift your back and shoulders off the floor to sit up. Try to keep back straight, not hunching. Lower your back down and repeat sitting up. To make sit-ups more challenging and build your abs, use an incline bench to raise your feet while doing sit-ups. You can also hold some weight over your chest while sitting up. Add more weights when these become too easy for you.

2. Leg Lifts

While lying on the floor with legs straight and hands at your sides, lift legs without bending knees up to 90 degrees with your body. Then, lower the legs but avoid touching the floor. Repeat. For more challenging leg lifts using parallel bar:

• Easy. Lift your body with your arms using parallel bars in a gym then raise your knees towards your chest.
• Medium. While hanging from a parallel bar, raise legs horizontally.
• Hard. While hanging on a parallel bar, raise your legs all the way up to the bar with legs straight.

3. Butt-Ups

Starting in the push-up position, with forearms and elbows on the floor, slowly move your butt (glutes) up high so your body looks like a mountain. Then lower the glutes slowly to starting position, without letting the back sag.

4. Crunches

While lying down with knees bent and feet on floor, support your head with your hands and crunch up slowly to lift shoulders off the floor. For more challenging crunches, lift your feet with knees at 90 degrees, and draw knees to your chest while crunching up.

5. Planks

Lie with your belly on the floor and rest the upper body on your forearms flat against the floor. Contract butt and abdominal muscles to prevent arching of your back, and slowly lift your chest from the ground. Hold the position for 5 seconds. Return to starting position and repeat.

6. Bicycle Maneuver

Lie on the floor and place hands behind your neck. Lift your knees to 45 degrees and do pedaling motions. Let your left elbow touch your right knee, then the right elbow to the left knee.

7. Captain's Chair

Sit on a chair, pressing your back against the back of the chair. Hold the armrests and slowly lift the knees toward the chest. Return to starting position and repeat.

8. Crunches on an Exercise Ball

Start by sitting on an exercise ball, with feet flat on the floor. Let the exercise ball roll backward until you are lying on it, with thighs and upper body parallel to the floor. Cross arms over chest and tuck in your chin. Contract the abdominal muscles and raise your torso not more than 45 degrees. Spread your feet wide for better balance. But if you want more challenge, move your feet closer together.

9. Vertical Leg Crunches

While lying on the floor with hands behind your head, extend the legs upward while crossed at the ankles and slightly bent at the knees. Squeeze the abdominal muscles by lifting your chest toward your knees.

10. Reverse Crunches

While lying on the floor, with hands beside the head or flat on your sides, cross your feet at the ankles and lift feet off the ground with knees bent. Press the lower back against the floor and contract the abdominal muscles. The hips will rotate slightly as your legs reach upward with every contraction.